Buttermilk Panna Cotta with Blueberry Compote

Tangy and sweet buttermilk panna cotta with jammy blueberry compote.

Panna Cotta I love you! Its one of those desserts that people really shy away from, yes we are working with gelatine (which makes this recipe not vegetarian) to set the custard but apart from that it is dead easy.

To make matters even more stress-free I suggest pouring the custard into small bowls to set rather than moulds, thus you really leave out the guess work of whether your custard has set or not.

Simply pour over the berry compote and take a luscious scoop into this light as a feather custard. I love the look of all sorts of little bowls arranged on the table for people to help themselves too.

Once you’ve whipped up a batch of the blueberry compote, it’s also great on pancakes, stirred into yoghurt or drizzled over a cake.

Plan Ahead: the custard will take at least 4 hours to set, its really best to leave in the fridge to set overnight.

Make Ahead: the dessert can be made 3 days in advance (win-win!), refrigerate, just make sure the buttermilk and cream has not expired yet. The compote can be made and stored in the fridge for 1 week (prob more)

TIP: its really important to stir the gelatine granules (called powdered gelatine) really well into the hot custard to completely dissolve the granules. Sieving the custard after stirring will help too.

Fills 6 small bowls (makes 500ml custard)

A buttery shortbread biscuit will be delicious.

6 small pudding bowls/teacups/small sugar bowls (I used an assortment of sizes).

• 300g buttermilk
• 200g cream
• 1 teaspoon powdered gelatine
• 125g castor sugar
• 1 fresh vanilla pod
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice

Blueberry Compote

• 150g fresh blueberries
• 1 small lemon, juice & zest
• 3 teaspoons icing sugar (more depending on how sweet you want your compote)

1. To make the compote. combine half the blueberries, lemon juice, zest and icing sugar in a small saucepan, gently simmer, covered, for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, the blueberries should release their juices and the mixture should look jammy. Add the remaining blueberries and gently cook, covered, for 5 minutes,  stirring occasionally. Have a taste and adjust with a teaspoon or so icing sugar if the compote is too sour. stirring occasionally. Remove from the heat. The mixture will become thick and jammy as it cools.
2. To make the panna cotta, split the vanilla pod in half, carefully scrape out the seeds with the back of the knife. Heat the milk, cream and sugar on medium heat, add the vanilla seeds and pod. Gently heat until steam starts to rise, it is really important to never boil the custard.
3. Remove the custard from the heat, stir in the gelatine and whisk (like your life depends on it) making sure all the granules have dissolved, for 2 minutes to be on the sure side. Sieve the custard and leave to cool slightly at room temperature, stirring occasionally.
4. Pour the custard into your bowls or cups (about 3/4 full) and leave to set in the fridge overnight.
5. To serve, simply remove from the fridge, drizzle the compote over the custard and handout some spoons! Enjoy!